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Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Animals of Newport

We recently went for walkabout to Newport Rhode Island. Long weekend actually.
Of course while there we looked for events and found a craft festival at Potter's Animal Shelter.
Of course we looked at all the dogs for adoption.
Of course we took this one for a walk to see if we matched and we were hopeful...

A little mix of poodle and whatnot. They told us he does shed, which is unfortunately a deal breaker, only because of allergies. Still... we hoped he'd love us and we'd suddenly have a pup for the 8 hour drive home!

Alas, he couldn't have cared less about us. They said he was challenging. The other dogs were very interested in us and one broke my heart. An enormous American bulldog... white, sad... her person just died, and she stood in the very center of a nice little shelter cubical, cozy with toys and a soft bed, with a place for us to drop a treat in for her. She didn't look at us.

She was so sad, I felt it, she stood just staring at nothing. Lonely and stunned. I sure hope someone out there wants her, she's maybe 90 lbs and seemed so sweet.

We met this bird, and the staff encouraged us to walk past the barricade to visit. They said he was cranky...

Today was busy with lots of strangers but usually he flies freely around the office. He was full of whistles which we tried to match.

He got excited and danced around, taking a treat from my hand.

This is the nicest shelter I've ever seen.
If only Bobo the white pup had worked out. He didn't want to be with us at all.

On the way out, sort of sad that Bobo didn't mesh, we saw a woman playing ball with a three legged lab. The lab ran to us and kissed us through the fence.
The woman fostered the abused pup who lost a front leg when owners threw it from a car. She fell in love, and now they are together.
While we were talking the lab started digging.
Yep. Digging. Pulled itself up off it's front foot, landed on the one foot and dug a scoop quickly.
Over and over.

I said, that was a lesson to me. It was rejected (as I've been by family) and injured, as I am. Yet it just lives a life the way it is. No looking back, why me? Why did this happen?Woe is me, I can't (do whatever) now!

Nope, just doing what it can, and with joy.
JOY! so happy with it's new woman, with it's new life. Doing what it can. Digging which we all know is TONS of fun!

While in Newport we strolled along the Cliff Walk and noted that someone had come along and left lots of birdseed for these wild birds.
We toured Doris Duke's home, and I took many pictures of mansions to share in other posts. She was an heiress, and loved dogs. The docent told a story that a maid fussed at her dogs for jumping on the sofa (covered in 17th century tapestry) and Doris Duke correcting her, "those dogs LIVE here, you just work here" she said. You may recognize her name from watching PBS shows that are funded by her charity.

this is a view of her back yard.

Those dogs had the run of the place!
As did the camels... yep... camels were a gift from an admirer.

They lived here, and when Ms Duke passed away, the camels moved to designated home!
She also loved the arts and supported artists.

She loved recipes and I will give a set to one of you.

I got a set for me, and Drew got a set for me to pass on to one of you! Just let me know your favorite holiday dish, especially if it's odd. Speaking of elephants....

Oh how I love an elephant. Three mansions were decorated grandly for Christmas, and we toured them. It was truly like being in an episode of Downton Abbey. This was one nativity scene elephant

the elephant is maybe about 15 inches square? The homes are so large, one needs so much to make a statement.

These stuffies were in the basement Kitchen area. Nearly life sized. "We're watching you..." "More icing"
On the way home Monday we stopped in Mystic Connecticut and met Oliver.

Clapping hands with glee!! Whee!! so gorgeous and enormous. About 6" taller than Cole and 20 lbs heavier.

The owner of the shop and Oliver's person was shocked at his reaction to me. Oliver immediately ran to me, puppy bowing, putting his hands out to touch me. I was touched when he gave me a poodle hug... they come forward nose straight, bump their heads into your legs and press. Just like Cole. I petted his ears, which is what you are to do when they hug you. He stood so very still while we touched.
I sat and he came forward laying his head into my legs, just like Cole used to...

Of course I fluffed out his ears on top of my legs. Oh, my broken heart! It felt so good to pet a poodle like this again.

He knew I knew him. He was so kind to a grieving couple. We didn't leave with Bobo because the connection is everything. We will find a poodle to love in the new year I hope. Whether it's a rescue or a pup. Poodle people need a poodle.

23 comments:

What a great getaway! Just to see you with that Poodle brings back so many memories. You are such a poodle gal, such a total fit for you. I can't believe how much Oliver looks just like Cole while you're petting it !

What a fun excursion! And meeting some friendly dogs was a bonus. I'm sure you'll find just the right dog. A favorite holiday dish is actually deviled eggs. I only make them when we have a group because my husband doesn't like them. And I can't seem to make just a small batch.

It's good that you can get some poodle love from time to time. I hope something good comes to you in the New Year. My holiday dish is French-Canadian meat pies. We always had these after midnight mass. The sad thing is that I never found out how to make them. Now my mom has lost her memory so there's little hope of getting a recipe. There's always the "inter webs" that I could try.

My favorite holiday dish is cranberry sauce. I know it isn't the holidays without it and I try to make it several times from Thanksgiving thru Christmas. I'm planning a blog post about it. Your trip looked very fun. I hope someone furry finds you to love soon. Karen

Leeanna, thank you so much for your comment on my blog. . . you came through as a "no-reply blogger" so I thought the fastest way to get to you was to write another comment! Yeah, I can be lazy sometimes. LOL

I love the cranberry sauce from scratch.let me count the ways! Poodle love was so warm and furry and evident in this post it can't be long before arriving with their own bag of poodle tricks to you and your husband!!!!

The pup you are to live with will find you when it is time and you will know.What a fun weekend you had!I got kitties! Two of them. couldn't resist another minute and found a brother and sister, 4 months old, so they had time to get used to the dogs. (Who all love kitties as much as I do!) I have Levi and Dusty. Levi is a muted orange striped kitty and Dusty is a grey striped kitty!

I love what you said about the three-legged lab and I can totally related to your viewpoint. It only took me about 40 years to get to that point of trying to see life through the lab's perspective, but it's a much nicer view from this side of things. 💗

Oh, you don't have to find the right pooch, the right one will find you and you will both know it is right. Sometimes it just takes longer than we would like. Thanks for joining the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop!

I love Newport! Isn't the Cliffwalk wonderful? All those stunning homes! I feel awful for the big white dog who is so lonely & sad at the shelter. I hope he finds a loving home soon. You'll find your perfect Poodle too, it just takes time. I assume you've contacted Poodle rescue groups in your state & neighboring states. Good luck!Love & biscuits,Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them

What a charming visit you had and with such cool images especially while you were at Doris Dukes. She sounded like quite the dame. Some shelters can be so inspiring and yet there is a sense of sadness when you so hope 'that' one will be your new BFF. But Bobo was beyond pawfect...your poodle is nearby...I can just feel it! Hugs and poodle kisses from the Ranch gang. ღ

Wow! What a beautiful backyard Doris Duke had--I'd like to have that for my own playground! I'm sorry things didn't work out with Bobo--when I got Barley, I had gone to a different shelter to meet a pup I'd fallen for on PetFinder and that pup wanted nothing to do with me. Thankfully, I found the dog I really needed in the end. The same thing actually just happened with my second dog, too, except that the puppies I went to meet were gone by the time my application was approved, so I ended up with Rye instead. I'll keep my fingers crossed that you find your poodle soon!

Well, Bobo missed out being indifferent to you, but hopefully he'll meet "his" people one day. So sad about the bulldog that lost his owner! That breaks my heart.

When we had our 3 legged girls, folks were always amazed to see her charging up and down the beach and digging with glee. (Great core workout!) And that's really sweet about the poodle giving you hugs. What a sweetheart. Hopefully you'll find "the one" in the new year!

Hello, I am sorry Bobo was not a match for you. It is best to wait for that perfect dog. I remember watching Doris Day movies when I was young. I hope you find a poodle like the one that came and gave you a hug. Thanks so much for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Sunday, enjoy your new week ahead! Merry Christmas to you and your family!

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